IELTS Exam, Types of IELTS, IELTS Exam Fees, Related articles about IELTS Exam, IELTS Exam Pattern, Duration, IELTS Academic, Scoring in IELTS, IELTS Result, IELTS Dates, IELTS Preparation tips, IELTS Exam Skills
International English Language Testing System (IELTS) is an English language exam that is required to be taken by international candidates considering studying or working in a country where English is the main language of communication. Most popular countries where IELTS is accepted for university admissions are UK, Australia, New Zealand, US, Canada. The exam mainly measures the ability of test-takers to communicate in the four basic language skills – listening, reading, speaking, and writing.
A lot of students get confused about why are the IELTS scores required. The simple answer to this is that foreign universities and visa granting authorities need to be sure that you will not have communication issues while staying in the country. You need to show a good understanding and strong command of the English language, and that is why your overall IELTS scores are so important. Another common doubt students have whether IELTS is a compulsory exam or not. No, IELTS isn’t compulsory in all university admissions. Many universities might even not even require IELTS scores for admission purposes. But remember that if you don’t give IELTS, your chances of getting the student visa might suffer as the visa officers may not be convinced about your English proficiency without IELTS scores. So it is safer to appear for IELTS and aim to score at least six bands overall.
Often international students are confused between choosing IELTS or TOEFL, as universities abroad ask for either exam scores. It is up to you as a test taker to decide which of the two exams to take, but remember that IELTS is more preferred in UK, Australia, and New Zealand, while TOEFL is popular among applicants to universities in US and Canada. So knowing the required average scores for US universities and average scores for Canadian universities is an important start.
You can take IELTS exam with the British Council or IDP up to once a week (four times a month). The British Council and IDP global schedule for test dates are 48 days per year.
Check IELTS Requirements to Study in the USA
Types of IELTS
IELTS is available in two test formats: Academic or General. Students need to take the Academic IELTS test. Other applicants who need IELTS scores for a work visa or immigration purposes need to take General IELTS test. Here we cover only the Academic IELTS test.
IELTS test fees
The fee for a regular IELTS exam is BDT 15,800, and the fee for a UKVI IELTS is BDT 20,600. The fee for IELTS Life Skills is BDT 15,450.
IELTS Exam Pattern
IELTS Syllabus includes four sections – Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. You get marked on these four sections, and you get the IELTS total score as well. The total score is the sum of the scores in the four skill areas. The total test duration is 2 hours and 45 minutes. Here is the IELTS paper pattern.
Activity | Time | IELTS Academic |
Listening | 30 minutes | It encompasses four recorded monologues and conversations. |
Speaking | 11 to 14 minutes | The face-to-face interview includes short questions, speaking at length about a familiar topic and a structured discussion. |
Reading | 60 minutes | Three long reading passages with tasks. Texts range from descriptive and factual to discursive, and analytical includes non-verbal material like diagrams, graphs, and illustrations texts are authentic (taken from books, journals and newspapers). |
Writing | 60 minutes | A writing task of at least 150 words where the candidate must summarize, describe or explain table, graph, chart or diagram, and another short essay task of at least 250 words. |
Listening, Reading and Writing sections are tested in one sitting. Speaking section may be on the same day or up to seven days before or after other tests.
Scoring in IELTS
IELTS is designed to assess English language skills at all levels. Your total IELTS score will be a combination of the band scores from the four sections. Then You will receive IELTS scores based on each for the four skills on a band of 1 – 9, and you will also be awarded an overall band score. You can score whole (example 5.0, 6.0, 7.0) or half (example 5.5, 6.5, 7.5) bands in each part of the test. You need to have some idea about how the scoring pattern works to understand better how your IELTS score will be calculated.
IELTS Result
Won’t long to wait for your results as IELTS test results are released online 13 calendar days after you sit for the test. You will receive an email when your scores are available. You can log into your IELTS account on the IELTS Results website to see your scores.
IELTS Dates
For the IELTS exam, British Council Global Schedule for global exam dates is 48 days per year. You can choose any date according to your convenience and availability. The exam date that you choose should at least three-four months before your first application deadline. The basic idea is that you need to start, preparing for IELTS. A couple of months before submitting your application to colleges.
If you have any question about IELTS Exam, please comment in our Facebook Fan Page. Here you can find SSC, Dakhil, PSC, Ebtedayee, JSC, JDC, HSC, Alim Result, Suggestion, Mark Distribution, Routine, Admission, Job etc. If You get more update Everyday, Please like our Facebook Fan Page and get Updates.